Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1887-04-23
CHASED pY A sHE nrAR

| CHASED BY A SHE BEAR
On Friday morning last, writes Scran-
ton pa correspondent of the New York
Sun, Hiram and Cyrus Whitlock, aged if
| teen and thirteen years, sons of Farmer
Alanson Whitock, of Spring Brook Town
| ship, took their sleds and started across
Shiny mountain to visit their uncle, Phin-
cas- Beckwith, in the adjoining township.
| The distance was about i've miles. through
forest and fields. a playful young shep-
! herd dog accompanied them, and as soon
as they entered the woods near the base of
| the hill, they took the strap off the dogs
neck and let him run wherever he choose
| to, but keeping within sight When they
| got to the top of bill they sat down on their
| sleds TO rest, and while thus seated thew
heard the dog making noise few rods
away, as though he was at play with an
! other dog. The boys whistled for him. but
he did not come, and that surprised them.
Hiram and Cyrus then loft their sleds
and hurried into the thicket, where thew
| found the dog rolling apd tumbling in the
| snow with a small cub bear. The cub WAS
Just as full of play as the dog, and they
didn't let up particle at the presence Of
the boys. Mr.. Whitlock's sons were COM
! pletely carried away with the antics of the
two young animals who had got so well ac-
eral minutes they stood and watched them.
Then Hiram began to realize that there
would be lots of trouble for their Young
dog, and possibly for themselves, if the
CUBS mother should suddenly pop in upon
| them, and be said he guessed he would
snatch up the dog and take him away.
What's the matter with takin' the cub
| along, too y sand Cyrus. He amt much
| biggern the dog, an could carry him I'M
der me arm till we got out O. the woods.
! an then we could make him walk"
Hiram thought it over q minute, and
then said they would try. SO Cyrus crept
| slyly up behind the cub and grabbed it.
| and Hiram ran back after the sleds. While
he was gone the cub began to whimper and
try his best to get away, but Cyrus held on
to him firmly, and the little dog, who
seemed to think that thecub was an extraor-
binary plavtellow, hoped up and down and
parked, as much as TO say that he wanted
to have the cub put down so that he could
play with 1t more. On their way through
the woods the boys took turns to carry the
cub. 1t was q good deal heavier than il
looked to be when they saw il rolling
around with the dog, and as they had to
climb over many rocks and fallen trees,
they were pretty tired when they reached
the first open field. But they had made ND
tAAOAA AAlIho W ldhC llC lllltS captive over
to their Uncle Phineas', if nothing pre-
vented them and as soon as they got 10
the clearing they hitched their sleds to-
| gether, tied the still whining cab fast to the
top OF the front sled, made the dog stop his
noise, and started on a trot across the field
dragging the sleds and cub behind them.
1t was mighty sight more fun than they
bad expected to get out of the journey over
! to their uncles, and they enjoyed itgreatly,
laughing heartily, and telling one another
how astonished their uncle and aunt would
be when they put the little cub down in the
dooryard, and what they were going to do
with the cub after that. Presently they
reached the brow of hill, and then they
both got on the sled, with the cub between
them, and rode to the foot, the dog keep
ing close to them. 4 short distance IRON
there they had 10 ascend another hill, and
they took good rest in the hollow before
they started. AS they were about to move
along, Cyrus glanced back to the top of the
hill down which they had coasted, and saw
something that made his eyes bulge out.
He became very pale before he called his
brothers attention to what he had seen, for
the object was big bear. the sight of which
made them both wish they were in their
uncle's warm farmhouse.
They concluded at once that the bear was
the cubs mother, because she was very I'M
| easy and seemed to be looking for some
thing along the brow of the hill As it was
evident that she had not discovered them.
| they made up their minds to remain right
where they were until she had got tired of
| hunting for her cub and gone back to the
woods. Just then the dog barked like
| everything, for no apparent reason, and the
dogs noise made the cub cry louder than il
| had yet done. The little captiye's cries
nod 4, ~ Ill
| few seconds later she was tearing down the
hill at a rate that made the lads shudder.
Phe danger they were in flashed before
them as quick as wink, and they seized
the rope and rushed up the hill little
faster than they had intended to do, look
ing back every few steps to see how the big
bear was getting along
When they were about half way up the
hill they saw that the old bear was about
10 overhaul them before they got to the
top, and so they let go the rope and hast
! ened to getps far away as possible. AS
soon as they dropped the rope the sleds
| ran backward down the hill, and when
they passed the mother-bear she recog-
| nized her whimpering cub. and, turning
| about she followed the sleds into the hol.
low. Before the sleds were half way to
the bottom they upset. and as they went
tumbling along the cub was on top only
now and then. When the lads saw the old
bear turn back they tried to call their dog
to them. But he dashed after the sleds,
and they stood still ana watched the old
bear. A minute or so after the sleds came
to stop the old bear was at the side of her
cub. The dog got there before she did. and
when he undertook to play with her she
knocked the life out of him with one stroke
of her big paw. The lads saw that their
dog was dead, and they knew that it would
be folly for them TO attempt to get to their
sleds, and so they made tracks for their
uncle's house as fast as they could.
Uncle Phineas was thrashing in the barn
when Hiram and Cyrus got there. all ont
of breath, but they soon told him of their
exploit, intimatipg to him that the old
bear might be found and shot if some one
would go back right away and hunt for
her. In little while Farmer Beckvith
| told his neighbor, JEFF. Pierce, about the
| fun ahead, and then Uncle Phineas and
JEFF. shouldered their rifles, and the bows
| led the way over 10 where they had left the
bears and their sleds. They found the old
bear in the hollow trying to release her cub.
and JEFF. Glazed away at her. She looked
| up that way and gro5led, and then Uncle
Phlneas pulled trigger on her, and she
keeled over and lay still. When they got
1 to her she was dead, and they united the
cub, placed the body Of the mother on the
| sleds and marched over 10 the farm house,
| Hiram and Cyrus carrying the lonesome
cub, as they had done while picking their
way over the fallen trees in the forest. The
next day they took the cub home with
! L